7th Cohort of Belize Bank Scholarship Recipients are Recognized

A group of twenty students and their families gathered today at the Radisson Fort George Hotel in Belize City. The happy occasion was the award of the Belize Bank scholarships to deserving students based on their financial need as well as their academic performance. Ten received the scholarships including tuition, fees and a book grant to move on to high school. The other ten received tuition and fees to continue their education at sixth form. News Five’s Isani Cayetano was at the event and has the following report.

Cliff Peyrefitte, Scholarship Recipient

Cliff Peyrefitte

“This scholarship really means a lot to me. It will really help to benefit my mother. It is an opportunity that God gave me and I took action for that opportunity.”

Isani Cayetano, Reporting

The opportunity to course through high school at little cost to his parent, aside from making sure that he earns good grades and maintains his eligibility to remain on scholarship is not lost on Cliff Peyrefitte. He is bound for St. John’s College after doing well in primary school over the past year.

Cliff Peyrefitte

“I plan to study all night, I plan to do my homework, pay attention and also check up on all the people who inspired me. I’ll say thank you to them, because of you I will keep on studying and make this scholarship worthwhile.”

…and that is all that is asked of young Cliff, from his mother, as well as his newfound family at the Belize Bank Limited.

Lyndon Guiseppi

Lyndon Guiseppi, Chairman, Belize Bank

“Our motivation at the Belize Bank in getting involved in this scholarship programme from the outset was quite simple, it was the same seven years ago and it is the same today. We at the Belize Bank believe that education is the great equalizer in society. We at the Belize Bank believe that education is the great equalizer in society. What do I mean? It means that if you come from the south side or you come from the north side, if you come from Cayo or you come from Orange Walk, if you capitalize on the opportunity you have been granted to get an education, there is no difference between the individuals. No one coming from a wealthy family should have more opportunity from someone coming from a poor family.”

There are twenty students in this year’s cohort of scholarship recipients. Ten are off to high school in late August, the others are headed to sixth form. They are all from different walks of life. Brianna Ancona is a past awardee who shares a testimony of meeting the scholarship requirement.

Brianna Ancona, Past Scholarship Recipient

Brianna Ancona

“Not too long ago, in June of this year, I graduated from St. John’s Junior College as an honor roll alumni. From a young age, humbleness was instilled in me because my family didn’t have it all easy, however, I was thought to be grateful for the smallest blessings. My father is the breadwinner of the family and my mother stayed at home to look after us. We saw the importance of education at home and I surely knew they had faced many challenges to provide the best for me. In addition, I also knew the weight I would lift off their shoulders if I would receive this scholarship. Therefore, I tried my best to have all the qualifications required.”

The tuition subsidy, says Belize Bank Chairman Lyndon Guiseppi, is not to be considered a gift since the hope is that the students will do academically well during the course of their studies.

Lyndon Guiseppi

“A gift is something you give someone when you have no expectation of something in return, when there is no expectation of reciprocity. We have an expectation, however, of you. So this is not a gift. In return for the bank’s generosity and in return for awarding you this scholarship this morning, we will be placing specific demands on our students and tangentially on the parents as well because this is a joint effort.”

For high school, the Belize Bank scholarship covers school fees and a book grant. All tuition fees will be defrayed for sixth formers.

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